I have a 2-year-old lawn of St. Augustine that is relatively healthy, but it just doesn't seem to grow as thick as some of my neighbors' grass. For example, if you look at the edge against our shared sidewalk, where my yard is the grass is about 1.5 - 2 inches taller than the sidewalk. If you go 5 feet down the sidewalk against his yard, the grass (not just the blades, which are about the same height as mine, but the roots, etc. that you can see against the cut edge) is about 3 - 4 inches taller than the sidewalk. This is true of my (2) neighbors' yards on both sides of my house. Both of their yards also seem thicker and spongier to walk in than mine.

I pay for TruGreen to regularly fertilize my lawn, so it should at least be getting decent feedings, and I have a sprinkler system and make sure my lawn gets about 2 inches of rain+watering every 2 weeks now, and will up it to 2 inches every week when it gets 90+ degrees on a regular basis.

Also, I always bag my grass and my neighbors don't, so I thought maybe the mulching was helping to provide that thick edge/sponginess that I don't see/feel in my grass.

Any thoughts are appreciated.

bagging your grass is a waste of time

Make sure you have your mower set at 3-3.5" height, and like turgowned said, mulch your grass, don't bag it. Also, apply about 1/4" to 1/2" of compost in the early spring and in the fall.

[This message has been edited by zach2b (edited 5/3/2007 6:58p).]

Ask The Agronomist's (TM) two cents worth ....
There is no reason for St. Augustine to have more than 1 inch of water per week. As someone else said, a 3-3.5 inch mowing height is good. I would lean toward the 3 inch right now, and the 3.5 inch when it gets hot. Every 5 days is a good mowing cycle, and will cause the grass to thicken. MULCH - DON'T BAG!!!!!!

Doesn't mulching every time promote the fungal diseases? I always thought it was better to bag every other time. Not so?

I was under the same impression that mulching can cause a layer of thatch (which can be bad by not letting as much water reach the soil), but it does make sense that my neighbors mulch and their edge is taller with what looks to be kind of a layer of thatch in between the dirt and the bottom of the blades.

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I pay for TruGreen to regularly fertilize my lawn, so it should at least be getting decent feedings, and I have a sprinkler system and make sure my lawn gets about 2 inches of rain+watering every 2 weeks now, and will up it to 2 inches every week when it gets 90+ degrees on a regular basis.

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That is your problem right there. Fertilizing with synthetic fertilizer and frequent watering encourages bright green grass with weak shallow roots. Fertilize no more than 2-3 times a year with an organice fertilizer like Microlife or better yet topdress with compost once a year. Water infrequently and deeply only when it hasn't rained in at least a week. And as stated above, raise the cut height on your mower and leave the mulched cuttings on the yard instead of bagging. As long as you don't mow when the grass is wet, mulching won't generally cause mold problems.

mulching = good, bagging= waste of effort!

There is very little chance of the thatch preventing a significant amount of water from reaching the soil. There is a very good chance that the "thatch" will hold moisture in the soil longer during hot dry conditions...almost like...whats the word I am looking for...oh yeah...mulch!

I swear the concept of "thatch buildup" was started by 1)companies wanting to sell bagging mowers 2)The Hefty Garbage Bag company 3)Insert other thing here

If you are mowing regularly, there is little to no chance of a thatch buildup in the warm, humid Texas climate.

Tell your lawn company to switch to Medina Pelleted fertilizer, Texas T, or Dr. Gobbler. I'm a nutrient management specialist and professional agronomist, and I'll swear by that stuff. For outstanding color, use Greensand, or better yet, the Medina Micronutrients.

just think of this "thatch" as a mulch layer to hold moisture/temperature in your soil

There could be a pH problem. Incorporating Lime into the soil would be advantageous, for certain, in East Texas lawns.

Mulch it and compost. The best natural combo.

My St Aug is thick and lush. I mow it at 3.5".

What I would do is ask your two neighbors what is exactly that they are doing.

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bagging your grass is a waste of time

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Not to mention a violation of city ordinance in most municipalities these days.

What about this stuff, Milorganite in a 6-2-0?

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=97821-1321-97821&lpage=none

Also, if you mow twice a week, it will encourage a thicker turf.

nwhouston - mulching is when the mower chops up the grass very fine and it just falls back to the ground. side discharge is different.

So you have no problem mulching weeds back into your lawn?